Machine for holding fruit-boxes for nailing.



R. T. WOODRUFF 8x A. A. MAGY. MACHINE FOB HOLDING FRUIT BOXES FOB NAILING. APPLICATION mum mam. 1908.

933,282. Patented Sept. 7.1909.

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APPLIOATIOH FILED AUG.27. 190B.

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RAYMOND T. WOODRUFF AND ALLISON A. MACY, 0F WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON. AS-

SIGNORS OF ONE-HALF T0 JOHN H. BLAKE AND HERBERT M. ROYS, OF WENATCHEE,

WASHINGTON.

MACHINE FOR HOLDING FRUIT-BOXES FOR NAILING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 7, i909.

Application'filcd August 27, 1908. Serial No. 450,542.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ltnvxuono T. W001)- m'rr and Abelson A. Mam, citizens of the United States, residing at l Venutchee, in the county of ("lichin and State of Vvashin, ;t.on, have invented certain new and useful lmprovements in lVlec-hincs for Holding Fruit- Boxcs for Nailing; and we do declare the following to he :1 .l'ull, clear, and exact de scription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to nmltc and use the same.

This invention contemplates the construe tion of an improved lllfl-Chlllfi for holding fruit boxes in position for nailing the; tops thereon in such a manner that the sidesuf. the box will be bulged outwardly while being held.

F rnits intended for shipment. are required to be LCliQd with What is known ns the forest pack, which is accomplished by placing the fruit in layers in a suitable box, which is usually constructed rectangular in shape, and in such manner that the fruit will more than till the box, extending slightly above the upper edges of the same to a distance of approximately one and one-half inches. When the front has been disposed of within 4 fruit box, so that: it more than fills said box, the top boards are then laid upon the fruit and the vertical ends of the box are forced toward each other, thereby giving the sides of the box a slightly curved shape. The tops are then nailed to the ends of the box, and cleats-nailed over the edges to more firmly secure the tops to the ends. The fruit prepared for shipment by the forced pack is not as likely to be injured by the jostling or moving of the fruit in the box after being packed, as is the case with fruit packed otherwise, and, consequently, it is very desirable to prepare various kinds of frnihsuch es ap les and oranges, for ship ment with the .l hrced pack.

Heretofore it has been diflienlt to conveniently manipulate a box filled to overflowing with fruit for packing in such. a manner that the sides of the box could be bulged outwerdly and the tops and cleats quickly and properly secured thereto.

One of the objects of this invention is the production of a machine which will efiicienlly compress a box filled with Iruit and allow an operator to quickly and accurately nail a cover and reinforcing cleats thereon. Another object of this invention is the prmluction of a machine for holding fruit boxes for nailing, provided with means operated by footpressure for forcing the ends of the box toward. each other, said means being controlled by a friction clutch arranged to be released by a foot tri Another object of this invention is the production of a machine for holding boxes 7 lobe nailed provided with means for forcing the ends of a box toward each other in such manner that the box will be held auton atically in its forced position and the cover and cleats ofsaid box may be quickly and accurately nailed to the box while the box is held in its forced position.

Vv'ith these andother objects in View, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combinatioirand arrangement of parts as will be described and par ticulsrly pointed out in the appended claims and in the drawings, in which,

Figurci is ii top plan View of our im proved machine; Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof, showing the. gripping arms, which form a part of our invention, extended; Fig. 3 is a. side elevation thereof, showing the grippin arms in closed position over a fruit box own in dotted lines, and also showing certain parts broken away; Fig. 4

is an end elevation; Fig. 5 is a detail view-of the toggle joint; Fig. 6 is another view of a tog le Joint and Fig. 7 is a detail front ale-3 vntio'n of a clutch.

Corresponding or like parts are referred to :in the following description, and in all of; the views of the drawings by the same reference'characters.

The frame of our machine compmses standards, 1, which are formed preferably of angle iron, top cross bars, 2, 3, 4 and 5,

which are mounted rigidly on the upper ends of the standards 1, in such a fnanner that the horizontal flanges of the top cross bars, which are formed of angle iron, will ongage the vertical flanges of the. standards. The top side bars, 2 and 3, are connected together intermediate of their ends by horizontul rails,"6 and 7, which are. formed of angle iron, and with one of their flanges 25 with rounded ends arranged to extend 40 middle body portion of said rod in a direc turned downwardly. A. second rail, 8, crosses the rails ti and 7, midway of their ends, and is formed with an upwardly-extending ai'ige, and the same serves to limit or gage 5 the position of the box on the frame, the lower ends of the front standards being connected by a brace 9, which is secured thereto at a slight. distance from their ends. The remaining standards are secured at their lower ends by a backside brace, 10, which is connected to the standards at a distance sli htly above the brace, 9. A pluralityof end braces, 11 and 12, are connected to the standards and each of the end braces is 15 formed with an oblique aperture, 13, through which the end of an operating rod is arranged to extend.

A foot lever, 14., which is formed with a foot plate, 15, is connected by a pivotal joint, g0 16, to back brace, 10, and said lever extends forwardly from said brace and at an angle thereto and to the front part of the frame. The lever 14 connects with a plurality of jointed bars, 17 and 18, which are formed 01' said bars 29 and 31. The trip lever, 32 is arranged to move the clutch bar 31 away from the lever, 14, which extends between said bar and the bar 29, at the will of an operator.

A plurality of gripping or clamping arms, 3 and 34, are pivotall' bars, 17 and 18, midway of the ends of said bars and extend u )wardly in angular relation to the standar s and above the to cross bars. The arms, 33 and 34, are prel iirably arched at a point near their lower ends and are formed with transverse pins, 35, 36. The upper ends of the arms, 33 and 34, extend through guide members, 37 and 38 3 which are positioned on opposite ends 0 the upper portion of the frame, and each of said guide members is secured to the upper portion of the frame so that its outer end will be higher than its inner end, and each 3 of the guide members is formed with a loop, 39, which extends downwardly from the body portion thereof at an oblique angle thereto. The gripping arms, and 34, are arranged to be moved toward each other, when the lever 14, is depressed, and as the gripipin arms, 33 and 34. are moved inwardly y the depression of the foot lever,

4, operating the bars, .17 and 18, the pins,

35 and 36, of the gripping arms will ride as over the guide mem )ers 37 and 38, and dro into t e loops, 39, of said members. The upper ends of the gripping arms, 33 and 34,

are bent at approximately right-angles to the body portion of the arms, and each formed with a downwardly bent cleat-engaging portion, 40. The upper ends of the arms, 33 and 34, are also formed with openingsarran ed to permit an o orator to freely insert nai s through the ends of said arms and against a box top.

he frame of our machine is )referabl provided with vertical bars, 41 and 42, which are secured to the back portion of the frame, and extend above the top thereof. Said bars are arranged to serve as stops for box to s which ma Y be positioned on the top of t to frame, am against the vertical bars, 41 and 2 he frame is also provided with a rack, 43, adapted to receive cleats for use in toppinlg boxes, and a nail box, 44, for holding nai s within easy reach of the left-hand of the operator.

When an operator desires to top a box with our machine, an empt box is arranged bio of the frame,

through apertures formed in the end braces. The bars 17 and 18 are pivotally connected is provided with a pivotal member or ver- 30 tical cross piece, 20. The vertical cross piece is formed with end apertures, 21, 22, and is ture 2].

5 A rod, 23, is mounted on the upper part of the frame and movable thereon, and said rod is formed at one end with an arm, 24, arranged on the outside of the frame, and a second arm, 25, extends laterally from the tion opposite to arm 24. The arm, 24, is formed with an aperture, 26, through which the hooked end of'a link, 27, extends. A vertically arranged coiled spring, 28, is

5 hooked or connected "at one end to the arm. 25, of the rod, 23,-a d extends downwardly therefrom to the vertical cross piece, 20, with which it is connected.

A vertical bar, 29, is rigidly mounted on 50 the front side of the frame, and centrally thereof, and the foot lever, 14, is arranged to mov against the vertical edge of said bar. A horizontal bar or link, 30, is pivotally mounted at one end on the vertical bar, 29,

55 and is connected at its other end to the link, 27. he horizontal bar, 30, is pivotally connected with one end of a clutch bar., 31, which is arranged to be moved by the horizontal bar 30, against the sides of the lever, tend slightly above the 11 per edges of the e0 14. A trip lever, 32, arranged to be operated box. A top is then placed on the fruit and by foot pressure, is pivotally connected at cleats placed on the ends of the to and one end to the rigid vertical bar, 29, and ad practically simultaneously with the p acin jacent to its pivotal connection to bar 29, of the cleats on the top, the footlever, If, said lever 32 is pivoted to the clutch bar, 31, is depressed so that the gripping arms, 33

or. being preferably connected to the lower ends and 34, will be swung inwardly and their upper bent ends will engage the box top and the cleats, and the ends of the box will be forced toward each other by the pressure which is exerted upon thefoot lever, 14. As the foot lever 14 is depressed, the spring, 28, will be extended and the rod, 2?), rocked on the frame, thereby raising the link, 27, and forcing the clutch bar, 31, against the lever, 14.. As the clutch bar, 31, engages the flat side of the lever, 14, said lever will be prevented from moving back to its normal p )sition by frictional engagement with 3 id clutch bar. The clutch bar, 31, may be formed with clutch teeth arranged to en-.

gage corrcs 'ionding clutch teeth formed in the lever, 14, but it is considered best to form the clutch bar without such teeth. When the box top and cleats have been properly nailed to the box, pressure is applied to the trip lever, 32, and the clutch bar, 31, moved away from engagement with the lever, 14, so that the spring, 28, will raise the lover, 14, to its normal position, thereby opening or expanding the gripping arms, 33 and 34. The movement of t e gripping arms, 33 and 34, and the lever, 14, will cause the rounded ends of the bars, 17 and 1.8, to slide in the apertures formed in the end. braces 12 and 13. The gripping arms 33 and 3t are bent near their lower ends to throw the center of gravity outside of the point where said arms are pivoted to the bars, 17 and 18, so that when the foot lever is in its elevated osition, the arms, by force of gravit a one, will be caused to fall in opposite'directions until stopped by the guides, 3.7 and 38.

If desired the flanges of the cross piece secured to the frame may be suitably notched for the reception of locking means for securing the gripping arms in closed position.

Our machine provides for a better way of placing the cleats than the existing machines, giving a greaterconvemence to tie operator in nailing down the box top. Moreover, it

' does away witlfthe defective clutch mechanism in use, and provides for the release of the grip ing arms from their closed POSI- tion, and the foot lever from its depressed osition, which means may beoperated by oot ressure. It dispenses with the spr'mgs for orcing the gripping arms into position for gripping-the box top and increases the leverage which me be exerted upon said arms without comp icating the operation in any way. The frictional enga ement of the lever with the frictional clutci bar assures an accurate and ositive control of the ing arms, there y keeping the ends 0 t e against the upper edges thereof so that an I operator may quickly and properly nail the c ea ts and cover to the box edges.

Our improved machine overcomes all of the prinoipahditficulties of the existing ma.-

r-hines, and permits of the more rapid hun dling of fruit. boxes and the quirk nailing of covers and cleats thereto.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the uccouipnnyiug drawing, the construction and operation of the invention will be readily understood without rcquiring a more extended explnnution.

Various changes in the own, proportion and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the prinriple or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what wc'claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

l. A frame formed of angle iron, said frame being formed with rails for guiding a box thereon, gripping nrins formed with looped ends whereby nails may be inserted therebetween and arranged on the frame, lateral ins secured to the gri ping urine, guides ormed with loops for the reception of the lateral pins and for guiding the movement of the gripping arms and pins, menus for supporting the gripping arms whereby said arms are held normally extended, and means operated by foot pressure for holding andreleasing the gri ping arms.

2. A frame of angle iron, cross are *nornted on the frame for su porting a b023, means for forcing the ends 0 the box toward each other, a frictional clutch for holdin the arms in a closed position, and a foot trip fir roles: in the frictional clutch." 1

porting a box, uides mounted on the upper portion of the rame, gripping members extending through the guides, means for forcin the gripping members toward each oter, means for securing the gri pin memberson the frame adapted to 1101 sai members to allow said members to fall :1 art, a. frictional clutch for engaging the timing ri1eans,anda. foot trip for releasing the frictional clutch.

irsune provided with means to. sup- 4. A frame, a plurality of gripping memfoot lever from returning to its norms po siti'on, a spring for returning the lever to its normal osition, and means for releasing the 'clutc mechanism.

5. Means ior supporting a box, means for forcing the ends of the box toward each other, and clutch means automatically hp 'of said gripping means from said position.

7. Means for supporting a box, gripping means extei'iding above the supporting means, means for supporting the gripping means extended, means for forcing the gripping means toward each other guides for the gripping means, and pins carried by the gripping means movably on the guides,

8. A frame, a plurality of gripping arms supported on the frame, a foot lever pivotall mounted on the frame for forcing the upper portions of the grippin arms toward each other, and link bars slid ably mounted on the frame for connecting the lever to the gripping arms.

A frame, a plurality of gripping arms extendingabove the frame and supported thereon, each of the arms being provided with pins extending throu h the upper end portions, and slotted guites formed with downwardly looped portions for guiding the movenu-nts of the ripping arms.

10. A frame, a plurality of gripping arms formed with cheat-engaging ends, and pivot-- ally sup mrted on the frame, slotted members for guiding the movement of the gripping arms, a foot lever for forcing the upper ends of the ripping arms toward each other, and a chi-tel connected to be moved on the depression of said foot lever into enga ementwith said lever for holding it in epressed position.

11. A frame, a plurality of grippin arms supported on the frame, a plurality 0 links connected to the gripping arms, a foot lever )ivotally mounted at ,its rear end on the rame having. connections with the links, a

mounted on the frame for clutch indirectly operated by the foot lever for holding said lever in a depressed position, and a foot release for releasing the clutch from engagi-nnent with the lever.

12. A frame, a lnrality of gripping arms supported on the rame, each of the grip ing arms being provided with pins exten ing through their upper portions, a plurality of guides mounted on the frame engaging the pins, a plaralit of links connected to the gripping arms, a ever connected with said links pivotally connected at its rear end to the frame for operating said links, a clutch bar arranged to en age the side of the lever, and a bar pivotallir mounted on the lower end of the frame arranged to engage the clutch bill and adapted to be operated by foot pressure.

3. A frame, a plurality of gripping arms ex'tended above the frame and supported thereon, slotted guides mounted in the frame engaging the upper portions of the gri ping arms, each of the guides beingforme with downwardly inclined loops arranged to receive wins formed on the gri ping bars, a lever 01' movingthe upper end s of the gripping arms toward each other, a spring connected to the lever, a plurality of links formed with a toggle joint connected to the lever, a movable rod arranged on the frame having connections with the spring, a clutch operated by the rod for holdim the lever in its depressed position, and a bar pivotally releasing the clutch from engagement with the foot lever. In tr-stiuuan v whereof we have hereunto set our hands in presence of two subscribing witnesses. j

It \YMthi I T. WOODRUFF. .ximisox A. Mixer. \Vitnesses" to Raymond 'l. \Voodrull':

B. J. H rarusxsim, L. F. Bmz'r'rans.

'itnesses as to Allison A. Macy:

C. \V. BRONNFULD, R. It. Loni). 

